Two memorable events last week had me wondering whether the generally rather unassuming Arlington County, Va. that I ride through every day is catching up fast with Amsterdam. First, riding through the heart of Arlington in rush hour, I found myself behind an elegant young woman, dressed for success, on a real Dutch bike.

The November 2010 elections are fast approaching, with much at stake for many of the policies and initiatives important to the League and the wider bicycling community. That’s why it is important to make sure your voice is heard. Please check out our election center to research election information for your state.

The League has a proud and rich history of working for better bicycling. Founded in 1880 as the League of American Wheelmen, the organization launched the Good Roads Movement that helped get quality paved roads around the country. We continue this work 130 years later still fighting for better roads and conditions for cycling.

The US Department of Transportation has announced the 73 winners in 40 states who will share the $600 million dollars from the second round of TIGER grants. Of the total, 42 grants were designated for capital construction projects and 33 grants went to planning projects.

Last week, our friends the Alliance for Biking & Walking's PeoplePoweredBlog reported on an achievement in Missouri: After years of work by the Missouri Bicycle and Pedestrian Federation, the Missouri DOT put a separated bike lane on the Hear

The context that framed our Advocacy Advance report on bicycling and Climate Action Plans (PDF) was that strong federal action on climate change was not forthcoming and, as a result, states, cities, and universities were left to take action to reduce Greenhouse Gas emissions.

This isn’t how I wanted to spend International Walk and Bike to School Day. True, I was able to ride with my daughter to school this morning, but then had to finish up this statement to Tampa, Fla., area officials in response to a really depressing rash of fatal bike crashes.